Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The Supply Point Administration Agreement (SPAA) sets out the inter-operational arrangements between gas suppliers and transporters in the UK retail market. It is a multi-party agreement to which all domestic gas suppliers and all gas transporters are required by their Licences to accede.

The SPAA was created to provide a governance arrangement covering processes which are not ordinarily covered by existing contracts or agreements, but which are nonetheless considered important to the effective and efficient transfer of consumers between Suppliers. The Agreement provides a robust mechanism for making changes to the operational arrangements that are required to enable the flow of gas within the industry.

SPAA Ltd was created as the corporate vehicle responsible for ensuring the proper, effective and efficient implementation and ongoing management of the Agreement. It is a joint-venture company established and maintained by all SPAA Parties. The company’s role is to administer the SPAA and undertake any development activities required by the UK gas retail processes under the scope of the Agreement. SPAA Ltd delivers this requirement through an outsourced commercial service contract with ElectraLink Limited.

Any company holding a Domestic Gas Supply Licence or a Gas Transporter Licence is required by Licence Condition 30 and Licence Condition 14 respectively to accede to and comply with the provisions of the Agreement. Companies holding Gas Industrial and
Commercial (I&C) Supply Licences may choose to accede to the SPAA.

Licenced Gas Suppliers who only supply Non Domestic customers will still need to adhere to the Theft prevention parts of SPAA – find out more here

You can apply to accede to the SPAA via this page [https://www.spaa.co.uk/accede-to-the-code-party-registration/]

The costs associated with the operation of the SPAA are funded by Supplier Parties. The default funding mechanism is a market share model defined by each Supplier’s share of the total number of Supply Points in the market. There are provisions in the Agreement to allow the SPAA Executive Committee to agree alternative funding models for project costs, e.g. equal share, on a case by case basis.

The SPAA budget is agreed annually by all Parties and Suppliers are invoiced quarterly in advance for the agreed budget values. Invoices are raised to funding Parties in April, July, October and January in each financial year. The SPAA financial year end is 31st March.

SPAA Limited is a non-profit making organisation whereby its income must match its costs. Where the actual costs incurred by the company in the financial year are lower than the expected costs (budget) recovered from Suppliers in that year the difference is returned to those Suppliers in the next financial year.

All SPAA Parties are required to nominate a Contract Manager as the primary point of contact for any SPAA matters.

You can find a list of Contract Managers and the Parties they represent on this page [https://www.spaa.co.uk/parties/]. You will need to be logged into the SPAA website to view the associated contact details.

All SPAA Parties are required to provide contact points for certain processes listed within the SPAA Schedules. These are then published on the SPAA website for other Parties to use.

The Operational Contacts can be found via this page [https://www.spaa.co.uk/operational-contacts/]. You will need to be logged into the SPAA website to view the Operational Contacts.

The Contract Manager is able to add, remove, or update any of their Party Operational Contacts via the portal [https://www.spaa.co.uk/party-management/].

Alternatively, you can request changes via the SPAA helpdesk, SPAA@electralink.co.uk

If you discover that an Operational Contact is incorrect and this is preventing you from being able to adequately contact a Party, you should escalate this to the next level within the Operational Contacts list (i.e. from Level 1 to Level 2).

The Contract Manager is the highest level of escalation within the SPAA Party.

The Secretariat will also be available to help resolve any Operational Contact data issues.

Our service relies on a robust engagement programme built into our annual development strategy. Our strategic direction sets out a multi-channel stakeholder engagement approach that informs, consults and collaborates with all groups, and relies on feedback to continually improve the customer journey.

We hold regular standing meetings including the SPAA Change Board and SPAA Expert Group – any SPAA Party is able to attend these. In addition to our regular communications and updates on the SPAA website, we also assign an Account Manager to each SPAA Party to act as a single point of contact.

Our engagement activities include:

• Training: Quarterly training sessions available to all SPAA Parties;
• Webinars: Providing web conferences to the wider industry on important industry related topics;
• Service Review Meetings: We provide annual service review meetings to all SPAA Parties with Account Managers where we discuss changes and various topics relevant to the Party;
• Newsletters: Our SPAA monthly publication updates members on key changes, upcoming voting decisions and events;
• Dedicated Help Desk: Live chat with one of our SPAA Experts during business hours.

If you are unsure who your Account Manager is, please get in touch with the SPAA Helpdesk or the SPAA Manager at SPAA@electralink.co.uk

If you would like to take advantage of the free SPAA Account Management service, please contact your Account Manager or the SPAA helpdesk on SPAA@electralink.co.uk/

You must apply to become an AMI/MAM through the SPAA website.

An AMI and/or MAM shall gain SPAA approval by demonstrating that the AMI/MAM is able to comply with the requirements of AMICoP / MAMCoP on an on-going basis

Complete the application form and one of the AMI or MAM Audit questionnaires found on the website [https://www.spaa.co.uk/become-a-ami-or-mam/]

You are also required to provide supporting evidence as part of your completed questionnaire and please reference where possible. This forms part of your initial assessment.

The Approved Meter Installers list can be found here: https://www.spaa.co.uk/%e2%80%8b%e2%80%8b%e2%80%8bamicop-contacts/ 

The Approved Meter Asset Managers list can be found here: https://www.spaa.co.uk/mam-register/